Designing Your Security
by Kassandra Persaud
Issue date: 12/1/05 Section: Arts & Entertainment
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At the MoMA this month there are more than 300 contemporary products and prototypes on display that are designed to protect the body and mind from dangerous or stressful circumstances, respond to emergencies, ensure clarity of information, and provide a sense of comfort and security. The exhibition entitled SAFE: Design Takes On Risk (October 16, 2005-January 2, 2006) covers all forms of design, from manufactured products to Information Architecture. Now more than ever, security has become a focus, even an obsession.
Good designs go hand in hand with personal needs, providing protection and security and inspiring new idea and invention. This art explores the ways in which designers skillfully address the wide range of our worries, both real and imagined, by uniting advanced technologies and advanced solutions within objects that are sensitive to users' habits and capabilities. According to Paola Antonelli, the curator of this exhibition, "Safety is an instinctive need that has guided human choices throughout history."
However, safety concerns here, in the United States, are not the same as in other parts of the world. Israel is the only country that guarantees every citizen protection against chemical and biological attacks. To make good on this promise, the government asked designers at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem to come up with an innovative mask that safeguards adults, children and newborns. The Mini Mamat, meaning protection equipment for infants, is designed for babies up to six months and is made up of a transparent cell where the baby can lay down. The cell is connected to an air blower which pumps in filtered air.
Not everything in this exhibition exists to combat chemical and biological warfare. People also try to protect themselves from threats in nature. For example, in India women use their saris (an outer garment consisting of a length of lightweight cloth with one end wrapped about the waist to form a skirt and the other draped over the shoulder or covering the head) as a way to filter water. The cloth is folded 4 to 8 times before it's taken to the river or stream where they purify the water. It is said to kill 99% of bacteria that causes sickness in that country. The cloth can then be washed and reused.
This interesting and meaningful exhibition not only informs us of the security needs of people around the world, it also raises our awareness of what kinds of tools they may use in their everyday lives. The unusual Treetents, designed by artist Dré Wapenaar, is a good example of design that draws not only its inspiration but also its shape from nature. The Treetent is formed as a tear drop, to create a calm and friendly environment that makes people feel secure and intimate with nature and among themselves. It was originally designed for England's Road Alert Group, activists who oppose the destruction of forests in order to build highways. The Treetents were meant to provide shelter for conservationists who were protecting the trees from being cut down, by allowing them to hang their tents on the branches of the trees they sought to protect. In doing so conservationists were able to keep watch over the trees targeted for harvest. Although the project was never realized, it was sold off to Hertshoom camping site in the Netherlands, where they are rented five months a year. They can accommodate two adults and two children.
Another artist with a very interesting exhibition labeled paraSITE homeless shelter is Michael Rakowitz. After a conversation with a homeless man in 1997, he designed this shelter as a way to protect people without homes from the elements. This large and interesting creation was originally constructed from discardable materials such as Ziploc bags, garbage bags, and packing tape. Rakowitz found a way to use these items to make lightweight, portable shelters that could be distributed easily among the homeless.
Students who would like to view more products designed for their safety may visit The Museum of Modern Art, located 11 West 53 Street and get in for FREE with their Lehman ID. For others, museum admission ranges from $12 to $20. Tickets may be required for some shows. Children sixteen and under are FREE. This exhibition lasts till January 2, 2006.
Good designs go hand in hand with personal needs, providing protection and security and inspiring new idea and invention. This art explores the ways in which designers skillfully address the wide range of our worries, both real and imagined, by uniting advanced technologies and advanced solutions within objects that are sensitive to users' habits and capabilities. According to Paola Antonelli, the curator of this exhibition, "Safety is an instinctive need that has guided human choices throughout history."
 Media Credit: Moshe Ronen Mini Mamat |
 Media Credit: Anwar Huq |
This interesting and meaningful exhibition not only informs us of the security needs of people around the world, it also raises our awareness of what kinds of tools they may use in their everyday lives. The unusual Treetents, designed by artist Dré Wapenaar, is a good example of design that draws not only its inspiration but also its shape from nature. The Treetent is formed as a tear drop, to create a calm and friendly environment that makes people feel secure and intimate with nature and among themselves. It was originally designed for England's Road Alert Group, activists who oppose the destruction of forests in order to build highways. The Treetents were meant to provide shelter for conservationists who were protecting the trees from being cut down, by allowing them to hang their tents on the branches of the trees they sought to protect. In doing so conservationists were able to keep watch over the trees targeted for harvest. Although the project was never realized, it was sold off to Hertshoom camping site in the Netherlands, where they are rented five months a year. They can accommodate two adults and two children.
 Media Credit: Lombard-Freid Projects paraSITE Homeless Shelter |
Students who would like to view more products designed for their safety may visit The Museum of Modern Art, located 11 West 53 Street and get in for FREE with their Lehman ID. For others, museum admission ranges from $12 to $20. Tickets may be required for some shows. Children sixteen and under are FREE. This exhibition lasts till January 2, 2006.